Space Invader

Stephenie Meyer,
A Superstar to Teen Readers,
Is Going After Adults

Can the writer who made Bella and Edward familiar names to millions of teenage girls have the same impact on adult readers? Stephenie Meyer intends to try.

Ms. Meyer, a 34-year-old mother of three boys who lives in Cave Creek, Ariz., is the author of the Twilight Saga, which features a teenager (Bella) in love with a vampire (Edward). Altogether, the first three books in the series -- "Twilight," "New Moon" and "Eclipse" -- have sold 5.3 million copies in the U.S., including 4 million in the past 12 months.

The author now intends to take a bite out of the adult market. On May 6, Lagard&egrave;re's Little, Brown is publishing 750,000 copies of "The Host," a science-fiction novel for adults that imagines Earth invaded by mind-stealing aliens. One human, Melanie, resists her alien "soul," and then both tussle over the same guy. It's "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" with a love interest.

"I haven't changed my style or anything," says Ms. Meyer. "I didn't think about the audience until I was done." While the characters are older, Ms. Meyer, in keeping with her earlier work, abstains from any racy scenes. "I don't censor or limit myself," she says. "It's something that comes naturally." Ms. Meyer's stance also reflects her Mormon upbringing. "There are lines of appropriateness," she says.

In recent years, such adult writers as Carl Hiaasen and Sherman Alexie have successfully published young-adult titles. But publishing veterans say few young-adult writers have been able to successfully cross over into the adult market. R.L. Stine, the author of the "Goosebumps" series, which has sold millions of copies, in 2003 offered up "The Sitter," a horror novel for adults that Bertelsmann's Ballantine imprint published. The title disappointed, selling less than 40,000 copies.

What does it take to succeed? "The ability to vary your voice for different age levels," says Carrie Feron, editorial director of News Corp.'s Avon imprint. (News Corp. publishes The Wall Street Journal.)

In "Twilight," Ms. Meyer writes from the point of view of a high schooler; in "The Host," the narrator is an alien parasite who is thousands of years old.

Excerpt

"It is too dark to be so hot, or maybe too hot to be so dark. One of the two is out of place."

Ms. Meyer's passionate fan base will likely bolster her chance of success in the world of adult fiction. Her pull extends to the Web, where one general forum on Twilightlexicon.com has generated more than 117,000 posts. Elsewhere, on fanfiction.com, where fans write tribute stories using famous literary characters, the Twilight Saga has inspired more than 20,000 original contributions. Only J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series and J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" have generated more stories on the site.

Meg Cabot, who began her career by writing adult historical romances before launching her successful "Princess Diaries" series aimed at teenage girls, says that the fact that Ms. Meyer's new book is adult science fiction won't hinder sales. "Her new book has a romance, and as long as you've got that steady hook you'll keep your fan base," says Ms. Cabot, who has written 50 books for the adult and young-adult markets.

"The Host" isn't the only book that Ms. Meyer will launch this year. On Aug. 2, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers is printing 2.5 million copies of "Breaking Dawn," which concludes the love story between Bella and Edward (at least for now). Publisher Megan Tingley says it is the largest young-adult print run in the imprint's history.

This December, Summit Entertainment will release a film version of "Twilight." Rob Friedman, chief executive, says the movie will open in more than 2,000 theaters and aims to attract women aged 10 to 60. "One of the things we're going to great pains to communicate is that guys will also enjoy the film," he says. The related advertising and promotion, of course, may in turn spur additional book sales. "It will be icing on what is already a very tall cake," says Ms. Tingley.

Ms. Meyer says she intends to promote both of her new books. But next year she intends to rest. "I'm pretty much burned out," she says.

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